New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy today signed a bill restoring $7.45 million in funding to Planned Parenthood and other women’s health facilities. This is the first legislation Murphy has signed since taking office.

“We cannot immediately undo the damage of eight years of vetoed women’s health care funding under Governor Christie,” Governor Murphy said. “But we can put the era of putting personal politics before the needs of countless thousands of New Jerseyans behind us. We are one state, one family, and we will stand in support of everyone’s access to family planning, to prenatal care, and to life-saving cancer screenings.”

The Senate version of the bill was sponsored by State Sen. Loretta Weinberg, Senate President Steve Sweeney, Senator Kip Bateman, and Senator Linda Greenstein.

Murphy also signed legislation providing Medicaid coverage for family planning services to low-income individuals.

The governor also announced that New Jersey will remove NJ FamilyCare’s restriction on long-acting reversible contraception post-partum. His administration said the change will decrease the odds of rapid repeat pregnancies that have higher incidence of adverse costly perinatal complications, including low birth weight and an increased rate of pre-term delivery.